National partner StriveTogether highlighted Promise Partnership Utah’s transformative work to improve high school graduation rates in their recent video and case study, “From Connection to Completion: Advancing High School Graduation in Salt Lake City.”
The case study emphasizes the importance of high school graduation as a critical step toward future economic mobility, including postsecondary opportunity, employment, earning potential, health and well-being measures, and more. Senior Partnership Director for Promise Partnership Utah, Tary Roch said, “We know that when kids graduate, they earn about 30% more than their peers who do not. That makes a huge difference in terms of the economic viability of a region.”
Setting Bold Goals: Our 100% Promise
With this knowledge of what is at stake, our Partnership set a bold goal of 100% of students in South Salt Lake and West Millcreek graduating high school on a college or career path and having their basic needs met by 2028. We know this is something no single school, organization, or government entity can achieve alone.
That’s why our Partnership is made up of stakeholders from across sectors including schools, families, districts, local governments, corporate and community partners—all aligning around shared goals and collaborating on data-driven strategies to improve high school graduation and the other outcomes along the cradle-to-career continuum at scale.
“Too often we expect schools to be the solution to every challenge a community faces,” said Ben Horsley, superintendent of Granite School District. “Our experience has shown that schools can’t do it alone, and having a backbone partner helps make sure students and families get the supports they need so schools can focus on learning.”
The Power of Mentorship: Hector’s Story
One of the key strategies our Partnership is leveraging to improve outcomes in high school graduation is Promise Student Advocates—an initiative that pairs students one-on-one with a caring adult mentor or “advocate” who helps them set goals, navigate challenges in and out of the classroom, and create individualized success plans to graduate high school on a college or career path.
The StriveTogether case study highlights how this strategy has made an impact in key indicators like chronic absenteeism, increasing students’ sense of belonging and connection, and ultimately improving graduation rates and student success. StriveTogether also published a separate feature story highlighting Hector, a student at Cottonwood High School who is receiving support from the Promise Student Advocates initiative.
When Hector first connected with his mentor, Alo Moli, during his freshman year, he was missing class regularly and felt disconnected from school. Alo checked in with Hector each week and asked him about school and life outside of school, building trust over time. Together, they set goals to attend class more consistently, complete assignments, and follow up with teachers. This personal connection and sustained support paid off. Hector’s attendance increased from 13% to 90%, and now he’s on track to graduate.
Hector’s story is just one example that demonstrates how receiving mentorship support can transform a student’s education journey.
National Network, Local Impact
This case study amplifies the work of Promise Partnership Utah on the national stage. As part of StriveTogether’s Cradle to Career Network, our Partnership’s backbone team benefits from coaching and peer learning alongside 70 communities across the country.
President and CEO of United Way of Salt Lake and Utah’s Promise, Bill Crim, shared that StriveTogether has accelerated local learning. “Because of our work with StriveTogether, we’ve learned from dozens of other communities building place-based partnerships. We’ve accelerated staff training and gained insight into what works and what does not.”
Promise Partnership Utah has maintained the Systems Transformation designation from StriveTogether since 2022, recognizing our community’s sustained collaboration to institutionalize data-informed practices, prevent disparities before they occur, and ensure every child has the opportunity to thrive.
Written by Jenna Fischer, Content Strategist
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About StriveTogether
StriveTogether is a national network of community partnerships that join together neighbors, including youth and families, nonprofits, businesses, schools and more, to work toward a future where youth can thrive in their shared communities. Cradle to Career Network members change the way their communities work together by building connections, sharing resources and using data to put more young people on a path to economic mobility. Our work helps young people meet seven key life milestones so that they have the opportunities they need to reach their goals, and, ultimately, thrive.
